The lovely Martthida Ritthinarong (simply known as Feb), owner of Dek A, finally responded to the customers’ clamor for bigger space and better ambiance, but still serving authentic, home-cooked Thai food. Dek A opened its second branch as a cozy resto hidden somewhere in Makati, near Rockwell.
It’s a good place to hang out with friends over good, unpretentious Thai food and Singha beer. 🙂
Check out our Dek A 2nd Branch experience as we also tried out the new items in the menu:
Dek A: Authentic Thai Hole-in-the-Wall Resto in Makati (Original Branch)
Dek A is now my favorite authentic Thai restaurant in Manila. Dek means ‘young’ and A stands for ‘number 1 in class (as in Grade A)’.
Feb, who owns and runs the restaurant, is half-Filipina and half-Thai. Although she lives in Thailand with her Filipina mom, they decided to open a restaurant in Manila. You might ask, “What makes the restaurant authentic?” Well, they have a Thai cook and their ingredients are sourced from Thailand every other week.
Read More: Dek A: Authentic Thai Hole-in-the-Wall Resto in Makati
Dek A Authentic Thai Food (Original Branch)
245 Pablo Ocampo Road (Vito Cruz Ext.) corner Flor Deliz, Makati City
(right across Caltex Gas Station in Vito Cruz Ext. corner Sampaloc St.)
Operating Hours:
Monday to Friday: 11:00am-2:00pm, 5:00pm-10:00pm
Saturday: 11:00 am – 10:00 pm
Sunday: CLOSED
The New DEK A (Second Branch)
The new branch is located in an old house converted into a Thai resto, found in an old Makati neighborhood.
It features a traditional Khantoke Thai dining area that is elevated on a pedestal, with a long table with short legs. This al fresco area can be reserved for that special date.
Inside the house, the resto stays true to its down-to-earth ambiance…
…with Thai Wall Art designed by Feb herself, who’s already a skilled illustrator before becoming a restaurateur.
This branch has a private function room that can accommodate 8 people for a more intimate dining experience.
We decided to eat in a private corner that can fit around 8 people.
DEK A NEW MENU:
Daily Menu (A1 to A4)| Daily Menu (A5-A8) | Daily Menu (A9-B2) | Salad (B3-B5) | Today Special (B7-B10) | Main Thai Dishes (C1 to C4) | Main Thai Dishes (C5 to C7) | Special Fried Rice | Vegetarian Menu | Beverages
★ TOM YUM (Spicy Soup) P250/order. Good for 2 persons. Popular Classical Thai Spicy Lemon Grass Soup with Mushroom, Chili Paste and Lime Juice.
There are two types of soup: the usual Tom Yum, which is the spicy lemon grass soup, and…
★ TOM KHA GAI (Chicken in Coconut Soup) P300/order. Good for 2 persons. Chicken in Coconut Milk Soup Flavored with Lemon Grass, Lime Leaves, Galanga, Chili and Lime Juice.
…the milky version using coconut milk. Both are yummy and served hot. Go for the Tom Kha Gai if you want to try a different kind of soup other than Tom Yum.
My Mercato Partner RJ was glad there’s a Vegetarian Menu option…
★ PAD THAI (Stir-fried Rice Noodles) P190/order. Good for 1 person. Special Thai Style Noodles, Bean sprouts, Spring Onion, Egg and Ground Peanuts.
He was able to request for vegetarian versions of the Tom Yum and the Pad Thai. You pay extra P10 to make this Pad Thai vegetarian.
★ KOONG PHAT POONGKALI (P350/order). Good for 2 persons. Stir-fried Shrimp meat with Yellow Curry powder.
One of the best dishes I tried in the new menu was the shrimp with scrambled egg that absorbed the yellow curry flavor. It was very spicy (just the way I like it!) and went perfectly with rice.
★ BASIL LEAVES FRIED RICE (P310/order). Served with fried egg. Good for 2 persons.
They now have more rice options in the menu (Special Fried Rice) but I’ll stick to the best seller, which is the Basil Leaves Fried Rice with its chunks of meat and full flavors. You can actually eat it on its own.
★ PLA LAT PRIK (P350/order). Good for 2 persons. Deep-fried Cream Dory fish with Tamarind and Chili sauce.
Here’s a different take on sweet and spicy fish using tamarind. The fried dory was a bit tough on the outside though, but the sweet flavoring was enough to win us over.
LARB MOO (Minced Pork Salad) P200/order. Good for 2 persons. Minced Pork mixed with Lemon juice, Fish sauce, ground dried Chili, ground Roasted Rice, sliced Shallots and Mint leaves.
This dish had a more tangy taste, which helped balance the sweetness of the other dishes.
PAD PHED NORMAI (Spicy Fried Bamboo Shoot) P280/order. Good for 4 persons. Stir fried spicy Bamboo Shoot with Basil leaves, Chili and Chicken.
This dish was not that popular at our table, probably because of the smell or aftertaste of the bamboo.
CHA YEN (Traditional Thai iced milk tea) – P60.
Their Thai Iced Tea version is good but request for less ice.
To complete the Thai experience, you could opt to order Singha Beer (P130).
Meet Feb’s proud parents (Miriam Mendoza, Filipina mother, and Chaiwat Ritthinarong, Thai father), who were in full support of the new resto of Dek A. Congratulations!
Overall, I love the improved Thai-inspired ambiance of this branch of Dek A. It’s a place where you can really bring friends to hang out. The food is still yummy, with new dishes you can try. The serving sizes are usually good to share and ideal for family-style serving. Budget P400/head.
It is still on soft opening, so a lot of things need to be done with the look and feel of the place. If you are bringing a group, better reserve and request for Feb’s presence.
DEK A AUTHENTIC THAI FOOD
5955 Fermina St. corner Enriquez St., Kalayaan Avenue, Poblacion, Makati City
Email: febby.mendoza@gmail.com
Telephone: +632 500-5933
Mobile: +63 915 878 5767
Facebook: DekA Authentic Thai Food
Operating Hours: 5.00pm to 11.00pm daily
Note: Cash Only for now.
The Parking is along Fermina or Enriquez Street.
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Full Disclosure: We paid for our meals. I wrote this blog post myself, and it expresses my own opinions. I have no business relationship with any company mentioned in this post or any organization promoting it. As a policy, I don’t receive compensation from food and travel places we feature in the blog.
P.S. Here’s the map to the new DEK A.
If you are coming from Makati Avenue, turn right into P. Burgos, and go straight until you go past Kalayaan Ave. Turn right into Gen. Luna, then go straight and turn right into Fermina St..
If you are coming from Rockwell, drive straight to Rockwell Drive and turn right on Kalayaan Avenue. Turn right into Fermina St. (which is the street before Coco Cabana).
After the ramen craze, seems there is a Thai wave in the local dining scene…
Wow! You recommended almost all the food here. We better go here! Thanks for the new discovery!
I went back to your old post on the orig Dek A branch. I have no problems with hole in the wall type of eating places, but at the very minimum, they have to be very clean and adhere to food safety & hygiene standards.
When I read what you said “Just lower your expectations regarding ….restroom facilities” and seeing the alfresco assembly area, it makes me wonder how clean and safe the food is, and how rigorously they train their workers. Believe me, I’ve seen a lot of horror practices behind the scenes!
thanks for share good images with blog contents.
looks great!! nice to see a vegetarian menu!! lol.